In the absence of symptoms, it may be tempting to ignore an STD in the hopes that it will go away on its own, resolving to take care of it if the symptoms get worse. With some STDs, though, there isn’t a progression of symptoms; the disease could go from symptomless to life-threatening with nothing in between.

There is a lot of mystery shrouding sexually transmitted diseases and infections (STDs and STIs). We've compiled a list of frequently asked questions regarding STDs, and provide answers to them to help spread knowledge and stop the spread of these diseases.

Don’t let the name fool you -- sexually transmitted diseases aren’t strictly exclusive to sexual organs. STDs can affect parts of the body other than sexual organs and parts of the reproductive system. Some STDs exist in bodily fluids or on this skin’s surface and can affect the eyes, throat, mouth, and anus.

Some sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are bacterial, others are viral. Some STDs can be contracted via bodily fluids, others from skin-to-skin contact. We've compiled a comprehensive list of how nine common STDs are contracted and transmitted.

This Saturday, June 27th, is National HIV Testing Day. The annual event, created to encourage everyone to get tested for HIV, began in 1995 and is organized by the National Association of People with AIDS. Over 1.2 million people over the age of 13 are currently living with an HIV/AIDS infection in U.S. with an additional 50,000 infections being added every year. People between the ages of 13 and 24 account for 25 percent of all new HIV infections and it is said that 1 in 7 of them don’t even know they’re positive.

Pink eye, also known as conjunctivitis, is a highly contagious infection of the eye(s) that occurs when the eye’s membrane (called the conjunctiva) becomes inflamed. The conjunctiva is the eye’s mucous membrane that covers the front of the eye and lines the inside of the eyelids.
So, is pink eye an STD?